Going on record with the LA Times, [the author of said "previews"] Peisner claims his Maxim higher-ups did assign him to write previews, and he only found out they had been bumped to the reviews section when the issue hit the stands.

While anyone who writes professionally knows how little control you can have over your own words once they're in the hands of an editor, the Times does note that the "previews" Peisner was purportedly contracted to pen were written in a voice that sounded kinda like opinion, opinion rendered by someone who had at least given the albums a desultory spin or two, rather than a guy issuing an "educated guess." - more on this story

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